Iga Swiatek makes fast start at Italian Open

Poland’s Iga Swiatek returns the ball to Italy’s Elisabetta Cocciaretto during their match of the WTA Rome Open tennis tournament. PHOTO: AFP

UPDATED May 09, 2025, 12:19 AM

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ROME – Iga Swiatek swatted away her recent disappointment in blistering style when she dismissed Elisabetta Cocciaretto in just 52 minutes to open her account at the Italian Open on May 8.

The world No. 2 came to Italy on the back of a demoralising straight-set defeat by American Coco Gauff in the semi-finals of the Madrid Open.

But the 23-year-old Pole dropped just a single game in winning 6-1, 6-0 against Italian world No. 82 Cocciaretto to move on to a third-round meeting with American Danielle Collins, who dispatched Romanian Elena-Gabriela Ruse 6-3, 6-3.

“I felt like the ball was kind of listening to me today and I had full control over the match, so it’s always pretty comfortable to play a match like that,” said Swiatek.

“You just need to continue the work you’ve been doing and not expect that it’s going to happen more often.”

Eighteen of her past 19 matches at the tournament were straight-set wins – the exception being when she retired from her 2023 quarter-final with Elena Rybakina.